Explain It to Me
Should I buy a house? Why do I say “like” so much? Should Gen Z bother to save for retirement?
Explain It to Me is the hotline for the issues that matter to your life. Send us your questions about health, personal finance, relationships, and anything else that matters to you. Host Jonquilyn Hill will take you on a journey to find the answers, whether it's to the halls of Congress or the local bar. You’ll get the answers you were looking for, and sometimes ones you didn't expect — and always with a dose of humor. New episodes every Sunday. Part of Vox and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
1
Battling brain rot
Bland colors, AI summaries, and declining literacy rates have lots of us worried that we’re losing our intelligence to the modern world. Can we get it back?
27 min
2
Sexy TV is back
Why we’re obsessed with Heated Rivalry and hooking up on the small screen.
27 min
3
Why everyone is sick right now
How this season’s flu got supercharged — and why viruses may make you healthier.
26 min
4
Internet bad
Once a place of serendipity and discovery, the internet now thrives on feeding us toxic rage bait designed to piss us off. Can we get the good internet back?
26 min
5
Is your brain lying to you?
Our brain constructs the world we hear, see, and feel — but tinnitus shows how that superpower can backfire.
26 min
6
Let AI replace you
If AI handles all our busy work and optimizes our resources, it may also give us the one thing there never seems to be enough of: time.
25 min
7
The rise of the introverts
Turns out those personality tests you’re taking online are all wrong.
23 min
8
Talk turkey to me
How this big, lean bird became the staple of the most American of meals.
26 min
9
The case for renting forever
Housing prices aren't coming down, and that's challenging us to redefine the American dream. Maybe renting isn't so bad?
25 min
10
Why your health insurance is so expensive
It’s open enrollment season, and new health insurance premiums are causing sticker shock around the country. So how do you pick a health care plan that won’t break the bank?
26 min
11
That text is a scam
You know those annoying scam texts offering an easy, remote job? We find out how they work, why they're so ubiquitous and the dark world behind them.
27 min
12
Paging Dr. ChatBot
Patients and doctors both are turning to AI for help with diagnosing ailments and managing chronic issues. Should we trust it?
26 min
13
Why (some) food tastes better abroad
We tell the stories of three ingredients that can shine outside the US: beef, bread, and tomatoes.
26 min
14
Should we give toddlers phones?
What we know about early childhood and screens, including a surprising argument for introducing tech at a tender age.
26 min
15
Is empathy toxic?
Society teaches us empathy is a good thing. But some are now saying the opposite, and science is complicating our assumptions too.
26 min
16
Who is the modern American dad?
Young men are more interested in becoming parents than young women are, and there's a growing number of single dads by choice. A look at modern fatherhood.
25 min
17
A nation of jerks
Americans seem to be getting ruder. Are our attempts at making ourselves better actually making us worse?
26 min
18
Why horror kills at the box office
Hollywood has always made money from vampires and brain-eating zombies. But this year's a record-breaker thanks to sequels, hilariously unlikely creators, and pure thrills.
26 min
19
The United States is Southern now
From #rushtok to country music, American culture is getting more and more southern.
26 min
20
The golden age of exercise
Americans are flocking to gyms and fitness classes. It wasn't always that way.
27 min
21
Hacking our health
We track our steps and our sleep, guzzle supplements and protein shakes, and even inject hormones – all in the name of wellness.
27 min
22
What wellness costs us
Americans are investing billions in their health and wellness. What good do all these green powders and costly club memberships actually do?
26 min
23
America’s high-speed rail fail
26 min
24
Is tipping fair?
From raising the tipped minimum wage to "no tax on tips," we look at the challenges of remaking tipped work.
27 min
25
The summer I turned into a bookworm
Summer. Time for pools, BBQs, and the beach read. But why do we read "summer books"?
27 min